A few questions about acrylics

[woody37]

I've had my first experiments today with acrylics after being a life long user of enamels.

I've experimented using screen wash as a thinner and cleaning agent and also tried using Testors acrylic thinner which seems to work better as a thinner, so that's what I'll stick with (not for cleaning as it's too expensive !!).

Also used Tamiya and Humbrol acrylics on test pieces. The Tamiya pigment seems better, but for some reason, the Humbrol seems to come out better once under a coat of Humbrol spray varnish.

So my questions are:

1. Are the Xtracrylics a good swap for Xtracolour in terms of colour matching ?

2. I prefer to coat the external surfaces of my aircraft models in gloss to aid decal fixing. Are the Xtracrylics gloss finish ?

3. If not, what do you guys do to get the gloss finish, do you add some kind of gloss agent to the paint or varnish afterwards ?

Any advice appreciated.

I have to say, I'm really impressed with the benefits of acrylics, fast drying times, no solvent smells and so far, found them quite easy to use as long as you put a very fine coat down first to prevent beading.

Cheers

Neil

[Andy K]

Answers are;

1. Yes

2. Yes

3. Personal choice for me is Tamiya X-22 Clear

[avro683]

Xtracrylics are what's known as "decal ready" which means transfers can be applied without further finishing. I must admit to using Johnson's Klear to give a gloss finish to my models prior to transfers although Tamiya gloss varnish is good too.

Tony

[woody37]

Thanks Andy. Do you add the gloss to the paint when spraying or add afterwards ?

[Andy K]

I only use gloss varnish after painting. With Xtracrylix being glossy-ish I use Johnsons Kleer to bed down the decals. However I try to keep to Tamiya acrylic as the Hannants stuff just clogs my airbrush constantly. (And yes I use Flow Aid AND retarder). I take my hat off to the guys who can spray Hannants acrylic cos after spraying a 1/32 Stuka in the damn stuff I'm loathe to use it ever again.

[Giorgio N]

Honestly I always coat Xtracrylics with some gloss varnish before decalling. They are not as gloss as Xtracolours enamels are, but rather have a satin finish.

At the moment I'm using klear as gloss coat, when this will be over I'll go back to tamiya gloss, that is what I used before discovering klear.

Have to say that acrylic paints like Xtracrylics or lifecolor have had quite an impact on my modelling: they dry fast, are great by brush, and have no bad smell....

[woody37]

Thanks guys. I've ordered some Xtracrylix paints and look forward to giving them a go. Once I get used to them, they will serve my lack of patience much better than the enamels. I dare say my models will improve as well due to less finger prints in the damn paint !!!!

[gcn]

you may find xtracrylix spray better with a drop of Windsor & Newton flow aid added. This slightly slows the drying time of the paint. I'd also keep a cotton bud soaked in thinner handy to clean the AB needle periodically, more so in the Summer.

[woody37]

I'll pick some up and have a go, cheers